The California Grocers Association is backing Senate Bill 405 by Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Pacoima.If passed, the bill would prohibit single-use plastic bags in grocery stores by January 2015.By July 2016, the ban would extend to pharmacies, convenience and liquor stores. Department stores and other non-food retailers would be exempt.The grocers say they are in support of a uniform law, because so many other cities already have enacted restrictions.“Retailers don’t want to be a position where they need to abide by 70 to 85 different local ordinances,” said Ronald Fong, of the California Grocers Association.Fong also said he agreed with the environmental goal of the bill, to reduce hazards to fish and birds, and also reduce waste in landfills.One environmentalist, speaking at the state Capitol, said efforts to recycle the bags have failed.“The plastic bags are blowing off the face of the landfills, blowing out of the transfer stations,” said Mark Murray, of Californians Against Waste. “They’re blowing out of the garbage cans and out of the garbage trucks.”Padilla said California uses billions of plastic bags every year -- a staggering amount of waste that does not break down in the environment.On Wednesday, the bill passed its first hurdle, being voted out of a Senate environmental committee to the Senate Appropriations Committee.The bill is opposed by several plastic and packaging manufacturing groups, which say much-needed jobs would be lost and global warming would be worsened.“Reusable and paper bags require significantly more water and energy to produce than plastic, and their production creates more greenhouse gases,” said Mark Daniels, of the American Progressive Bag Alliance.

If passed, the bill would prohibit single-use plastic bags in grocery stores by January 2015.

Advertisement

By July 2016, the ban would extend to pharmacies, convenience and liquor stores. Department stores and other non-food retailers would be exempt.

The grocers say they are in support of a uniform law, because so many other cities already have enacted restrictions.

“Retailers don’t want to be a position where they need to abide by 70 to 85 different local ordinances,” said Ronald Fong, of the California Grocers Association.

Fong also said he agreed with the environmental goal of the bill, to reduce hazards to fish and birds, and also reduce waste in landfills.

One environmentalist, speaking at the state Capitol, said efforts to recycle the bags have failed.

“The plastic bags are blowing off the face of the landfills, blowing out of the transfer stations,” said Mark Murray, of Californians Against Waste. “They’re blowing out of the garbage cans and out of the garbage trucks.”

Padilla said California uses billions of plastic bags every year -- a staggering amount of waste that does not break down in the environment.

On Wednesday, the bill passed its first hurdle, being voted out of a Senate environmental committee to the Senate Appropriations Committee.

The bill is opposed by several plastic and packaging manufacturing groups, which say much-needed jobs would be lost and global warming would be worsened.

“Reusable and paper bags require significantly more water and energy to produce than plastic, and their production creates more greenhouse gases,” said Mark Daniels, of the American Progressive Bag Alliance.